A Sky of Shadows - Part IV
Kai was careful to pull out his sword from Deren's lower abdomen and his dagger out from Deren's chest. Deren, who was bleeding incredibly from both wounds, began to lean back rather than forward. If he fell forward, he would've fallen down right on top of Elsa, and he was done hurting people. Besides, Elsa seemed pretty hurt already. He didn't want to torment Kai and his friends anymore. He was done with everything.
Kai's hands let go of his weapons and they fell to the ground with blood smeared on both sides of his dagger and sword. He then put his hand on the back of Deren's neck, supporting his old friend as he slowly fell backwards. Both Kai and Deren knew that that would be the last time Deren would ever stand.
Slowly and carefully, Kai lay Deren down on his back. The blood poured out from under, slowly soaking his clothes and creating a pool of blood under Deren. His eyes were still open and moving. His breathes, although slow and shallow, were still going on. In. Pause. Out. In. Pause. Out. Kai could tell the amount of work it was taking for Deren to breath, much less think and talk.
Kai knelt down next to the dying man, pitying the sight before him. Sure, Deren wasn't the greatest individual in the world. He wasn't an angel. But, he was still human, and Kai didn't think he would ever have to kill a human being.
"I didn't want to do that." Kai told Deren. Deren half expected Kai's voice to be trembling and his eyes watering, but Kai looked so stern and serious as he spoke. It was as if killing a man had almost no effect on him.
"I know." Deren weakly said. "That's why I needed to threaten her. It was the only way you would-" Deren coughed violently. Blood flew out from his mouth and onto his clothes. Most of the area around his mouth was stained with his own blood. It wasn't a good way to look when dying.
"I honestly thought the end of us wouldn't look like this." Deren joked. He managed a weak smile, but it showed more pain than happiness or joy. "I really thought that I would come on top."
"I could never let that happen." Kai told Deren. He looked over at Elsa who was still unconscious. Kai was sure she was alive. He could see her chest rise with every weak breath. "There is still life for me."
"There is." Deren agreed. "Not for me, though. A life driven by revenge is no life at all. If only I could've realized that before I accepted my death."
"All of these years past," Kai started, "and you have realized it at the worst time."
"Life's a bitch, ain't it?" Deren joked. He almost laughed if it didn't hurt him so much.
"It sure does bite you in the ass a lot." Kai agreed. Then, he looked over at Elsa who was still clinging onto her life. "But sometimes... It gives back."
"Only to the fortunate." Deren sadly said. "Life takes more than it gives, but, I see that it gave you something it never gave me."
"And what would that be?" Kai inquired.
"A chance." Deren answered. "A chance to become something other than what you were born to be."
"Maybe I was born to be who I am now." Kai rebutted.
"Fate didn't turn you into this." Deren argued. "You were born as a peasant, then you were a thief, and now look at you. You made a choice somewhere, and you chose right."
"You have no idea how many things I regret doing in the process." Kai distantly said, not even looking his dying rival in the eye. "I've done a lot of wrong in my life. I just thought that I needed to do something right."
"And I did not." Deren said, coughing out more blood. His face was getting paler by the second as he lost more and more blood. "Oh, how I wish life could rewind as easy as it is to stand."
"Everything happens for a reason." Kai said. He tried to recall who told that to him. Although whoever said it drifted out of his mind, the words did not.
"Unfortunately." Deren agreed. "Things happen for the stupidest reasons. Everyone I have killed, everyone I have hurt, all on my quest for blood... In vain."
"They have been avenged," Kai said, "so hopefully they'll be at peace. And I hope you will be as well."
"But," Deren said, "I guess I had more of a reason to help Mara. She said that freedom creates chaos, and I might've thought that she was right for a while. Hell, maybe she still is right. As long as there is freedom, there can be no true peace."
"Freedom is peace." Kai argued.
"There is a difference between the freedom to live ones life and the freedom to do as one pleases." Deren pointed out. "I know you mean the former. Freedom is a door to chaos, whether you like it or not. You can't deny that."
"I can and will." Kai argued again. "The freedom to do as we wish is a basic human right. Look at all we've accomplished."
"And look at the rapers, murderers, and thieves." Deren said. "They were doing just as they pleased. Tell me no chaos has come from that. You're too optimistic about the world around you."
I wonder where I got that from, Kai asked himself in his mind.
"After all these years past, some things still don't change." Deren said. "You wield your blade like a man, but your words like a child. But, you're starting to make a change. Today, you acted out of duty. Only the strongest of men could do such things."
"Only the strongest of men could murder?"
"Many would argue that there is a difference between murder and justice." Deren said. "Call it what you like, but just understand what it truly was."
"Mercy then." Kai said.
Deren nodded in agreement. Mercy was a good word. Mercy and justice. Kai had just prevented Deren from living a poisonous life.
"I'm sorry, Kai." Deren finally said. "I know that it's way too late to apologize, but I'm sorry. For everything. I killed your mother. I shot you. I took months of your life away from you. I helped start the end of the world. I'm not asking for forgiveness. I don't deserve any."
"I'm all out of forgiveness." Kai said. He couldn't forgive Deren. After all Deren has done, his sins couldn't wash away that easily. Yet, watching him suffer pained him. It has been about seventeen years since he had a kind conversation with Deren, and their conversations after those ones didn't make Kai like Deren any better.
Pity was what Kai felt for Deren. Pity for what Deren forced himself to go through.
"Damn you, Deren." Kai said. "You made me do this. I wanted my hands to be clean my entire life."
"That's too much to ask for for someone of your skills." Deren grimly said. "You do what you have to do to protect someone you love."
"I can't believe I'm being told this by you of all people." Kai joked.
"I asked for this." Deren assured. "My words and actions both led us to where we are now. Do not feel remorse over your actions. I killed myself, and I might as well have." He then began to cough more. "Kai?" Deren asked. "I'm scared. Not of dying, but of what lies beyond."
"What are you scared about?" Kai asked.
"I welcome death with open arms." Deren elaborated. "But, I'd hate to think that everything I've been through in life would just leave to nothing. No karmic consequence. I don't want there to be... Nothing. I want there to be something... Anything is better than nothing."
"I don't have all the answers." Kai admitted.
Kai, himself, has asked that same question in his mind countless times. What comes after taking the last breath was what he wanted so hard to find out. Is it like an eternal dream? Is there a heaven and hell? Or, does one just cease to exist without a conscious like how it is prior to birth. Kai reckoned that he would just have to wait and find out.
Deren didn't look all that relieved. But, he was at peace with death nonetheless. But, why did it hurt so much?
"If there is a hell," Deren started, "then my life has bought a ticket for me." He then began to cough out blood more violently than ever. He put his hands over his wounds, feeling the blood coming out.
"Hey," Kai said, "save me a spot down there, will you? After all I've done... Maybe I bought a ticket as well."
"The difference between you and me is that you still have your whole life ahead of you." Deren said with his dying breath. "You can still change where you're going."
Deren's last words were slow and quiet, but Kai could still make them out,
"Be who you want to be," Deren finally said, "not who you think you have to be..."
Deren's head then rolled to the side with his eyes still open. His hands stopped moving over his wounds. His breaths stopped coming. And with that, Deren let go of life, his eyes still open.
Kai knew that a natural reaction to killing a person was throwing up right then and there. Another reaction was to scream at the top of your lungs in remorse. Some, however, would have no such negative reactions and just think to themselves about what they've done. The most evil and despicable would laugh and clap. Kai was not in that last category.
Resolved. That was the word that best describes what Kai felt. After all of his years wielding a sharp weapon, Kai had promised himself that he would never directly take a life. But, now he broke that rule, and he did not feel sorry. He would be lying and deluding himself if he said Deren didn't deserve what he got. At least his last words contradicted his past sins. He was wise at the end, but blinded by rage for most of his life.
He thought that Deren should have had a second chance, but after everything that's happened, he wasn't sure whether Deren deserved it.
Kai grabbed Deren's sword which was right next to his fresh corpse. He decided whether or not he should claim it as his own. A token of battle. The steel of the sword was rather impressive and it could prove useful to Kai on many occasions. Then, Kai thought about how disrespectful that would be to his deceased friend and enemy. Kai would gain no honor in taking what was not his in life.
Deren was a warrior, and warriors deserved to die with their weapons.
Kai put the sword on Deren's chest and posed his hands so that they were grabbing the handle of the sword.
"Goodbye... Old friend." Kai said with finality as he closed Deren's eyelids.
He then realized that Elsa's body was not too far away from Deren's. She was, indeed, alive, and it would be wise for Kai to not regret it. He stood up and moved over to Elsa's body. As he took his few steps, he could hear nothing but the sound of his shoes tapping against the stone ground. It was so quiet. There was no crazy sounds. There was no chaos. It was... Peaceful.
Kai feared that with death comes peace.
Kai slid his hands and arms under Elsa, his left arm under her shoulders, and his right arm under her knees. He then picked her up with both arms, holding her horizontally. It almost looked like he was holding her like a baby.
Silently, he carried her away as he walked away from Deren. Kai had to leave Deren behind. There was no practical reason to bring him along. Maybe, if he had time, he would take Deren's body out and give him a proper send-off. But, there was no time for that now. He wanted to be rid of that place once and for all.
As he walked up the large stairs and towards the doorway that led to another but much more confined set of stairs, Kai was lost in his own thoughts.
Murder, or justice. Murder, or justice. But, Kai reckoned that there was a difference between murder and killing. Deren had insisted that he killed himself since his own actions led him to that point. Yet, Kai was still the instrument. Should the instrument still feel remorse?
Kai, surprisingly, did not. He had his reasons for stabbing Deren, and although he broke his rule, he had a noble intention. Deren has done more harm than good, and someone like that should not be allowed to run around in the world.
He carried Elsa up the stairs and through the opening to the outside. He expected there to be sunlight, but there was no such thing. The sky was a mixture of purple, black, and green patches of light here and there. There was no pattern in the colors. The temperature was colder than it should've been, and it was colder than it is even at night time.
Kai would've dropped Elsa in surprise if he didn't care about her safety. Luckily for her, he did, and he continued to carry her.
"Mara, what have you done?" Kai whispered.
He could feel Elsa moving in his arms. Kai looked down at her face to see her eyes just barely open, yet she still looked a little groggy. After blinking a few times, she realized that she was staring right at Kai's face. Elsa smiled warmly at him, but after everything that had just happened and everything that was happening right then and there, Kai didn't smile back.
"Is this a dream?" Elsa asked.
"No." Kai answered.
Kai then was shocked when Elsa put her arms around his neck and pulled her head closer to his shoulders. She buried her face in between in shoulder and neck, incredibly happy with affection.
"You're back." Elsa said, repeating it a few times. "You have no idea how much I've worked for this."
"Oh, I have some idea." Kai said. He could remember every time he had encountered Elsa and the others when in his dark state. He looked at them and mentally screamed at himself. He wanted so bad to just change those memories, but he couldn't. It was like taking a back seat while someone was playing around with your body, and you can feel and see their actions.
Elsa realized how dark it was and looked up at the sky in horror.
"Oh no." Elsa whispered. "Mara actually-"
"Yep." Kai interrupted. "I have eyes. I can see exactly what's above us."
He then began to walk away from the big rock that was the entrance to Mara's old home. He remembered exactly how to get back to Arendelle. The walk was not that far at all, being only about a mile and a half away. Kai just hoped that he wouldn't have to carry Elsa the entire way.
"We failed, then." Elsa said. "We lost."
"We can still stop it." Kai said, not sure if he was lying. "The trolls will hopefully know how. Plus, the eternal darkness is still young. We can still survive for quite a while."
"Then let's hope we can stop this all before "quite a while" comes." Elsa said.
She then recalled the terms in which she was knocked out. Mara and Deren were in the room with them, but now, they were outside with no Mara or Deren to be seen. That raised a lot of questions in Elsa's mind.
"Kai?" Elsa asked. "Where's Mara?"
"She left." Kai answered. "After she hit you, she just teleported away. Poof. I have no idea where she went, but it doesn't bode well."
"And Deren?" Elsa asked. "What happened with him?"
Kai didn't answer. Elsa looked up at him with a worried look as he carried her. Something good did not happen, Elsa knew that for a certainty. She had to be sure. Kai wasn't one to hold secrets from her forever.
"Kai." Elsa said. "What happened to Deren?" Her tone was much more serious and demanding, yet there was a feeling of gentleness in it.
Kai answered "He drinks damnation."
Mara teleported into a clearing in a whip-like fashion. Everything seemed to be in order. She didn't have any missing limbs or extra body parts which was a sign that her teleportation method went well.
She had to be careful whenever she used it. Mara almost never used it because it was more trouble than it was worth. For one, she had to be under the guise of darkness such as night or, in this case, a sky of shadows. And, she couldn't easily control where she was going. Mara could think of a basic idea of where she wanted to be, and she would teleport to more or less that area. But, it required a lot of focus and energy. Mara decided that she would rather walk. She could use some exercise.
Luckily for her, it didn't go horrible wrong. She could feel her feet land on grass, and so she had a feeling that she was in the forest somewhere. She found herself in a large clearing surrounded by thick trees. The trees looked like the ones which neighbored Arendelle in abundance, so she knew that she was still in the same country.
The sky was the black, purple, and green mix of colors she loved. The air seemed colder. Mara took in a big breath to savor the dark goodness she thought it was. Savor was not the right word... Mara intended to keep things like this for a while.
"Ah..." Mara said, happily. "Now that the skies are mine, it's time to control the lands."
Mara hit the butt of her staff against the grassy ground, and blobs of black energy - or was it muck? - appeared, spaced on the ground around her. There were about five blobs in all. The outline of three of the blobs glowed with green energy. The remaining two, which were almost twice the size, glowed with a purple aura, although it was still black.
The blobs rose from the ground and began to take shape. It looked like someone was making something with wet clay, yet there were no hands working it. The blobs changed so that they formed what looked to be arms and legs. Lastly, a head popped out of their alleged torsos.
Mara found herself surrounded by five humanoid creatures.
Three of them, which were the ones who had a green aura around them, were small compared to most humans. They were completely proportionate, yet they only stood to be either around three and a half to four feet tall. They seemed to be skinny and slender. They had no hands, and their arms looked like a bendable needle as their hands were replaced by a pointing end. Their eyes, like their aura, were green. Other than small slit-like eyes, they had no facial features.
The larger ones with a purple aura were much bigger than the green ones. They stood to be the average height of a grown man, with one of them being five and a half feet tall while the other was six feet tall. They had actual hands but with only four fingers, including the thumb, and missing the pinky. They were bulkier than the smaller, skinnier ones, with the average build of a man if not bulkier. Their eyes were larger than their smaller counterparts and they glowed purple.
Once they saw Mara, the five of them knelt down around her in a circle. A smile broke across her face. The Harbinger of Darkness was pleased.
"My children." Mara said, smiling. "My Spawns."
They did not respond. They could not speak. The Spawns had no reason to speak. Their only purpose was to serve under the one who had given them life, and they would serve to the death.
"I will create more brethren for you, children." Mara assured them. "They will pop up all over the world, and they will know what to do. The humans will fear us, and if they won't, I'll give them a reason to."
The spawns formed a half circle behind Mara as if they knew exactly what she wanted to do. Mara pointed the tip of her staff to the ground a few yards in front of her, and a huge, ginormous blob of darkness appeared. When she raised her staff higher in the air, the blob rose from the ground.
Mara didn't realize how much energy she was putting into her new addition to her spawns. She could feel the energy drain from her body rapidly as if it were taking from her life force. If that were true, Mara couldn't risk creating another large Spawn like she was then or else it would claim her life. With more power comes sacrifice. She couldn't even see a streak of her black hair turn grey.
The blob transformed into a large, large creature. It formed so that it stood on four legs. It grew a fairly long neck being about half the size of it's body. The tail shot out from its rear and it looked long enough to be able to wrap itself around it's legs once. From its back, wings shot out and their span was impressive. Claws grew on its feet. Spike-like bumps grew on the top of its head and down the middle-back of its body all the way to the end of the tail which had a sharp end. When it's eyes opened, they glowed a bright green.
The dragon leaned its head down to Mara who petted it and scratched its chin like it was a puppy. It stood to be about twenty feet high if it extended its neck, much larger than Mara or the Spawns, yet it listened only to Mara. She controlled the dragon which was, at the moment, the most powerful creature on the planet.
"My beautiful baby." Mara said to the dragon. "I know you have a thirst for blood. I'll give it to you, I promise. Alas, we must wait. Let the humans play their little game for now, assuming they know what they're playing. We shall bide our time, and when it finally comes... You will taste blood."
Elsa regained the ability to walk after Kai carried her for a few minutes. She was, however, still injured and was forced to lean on Kai for support. As they walked, she had her right arm over his shoulder and her left hand over his chest. Kai had his own left arm slung over Elsa's shoulder to help with the support she needed.
They didn't walk in complete silence the entire journey. When they reached the top of a hill which overlooked Arendelle, Elsa started to tell Kai the story of her journey and all that has happened. As they descended down the hill, Kai was only half listening since he was too busy trying to make sure Elsa didn't fall and trip and roll down the hill.
Elsa talked about the death of Pabbie, but Kai didn't need to be reminded of that. She mentioned Bloom the fairy, and Rhys the archer. Rhys interested Kai. Everything about Rhys seemed to be a story worth telling. Kai wanted to personal meet and thank Rhys for everything he had done. Without him, he wouldn't be where he was now.
She finished her story just as they reached the foot of the hill. They walked towards a gap between buildings which would let them enter the city. When they entered, they found a lot of the civilians looking up at the sky and talking amongst each other about what has happened. Gasps came out when they saw Elsa and Kai walking together. No one approached the couple, even though they could see the condition both were in. They just walked in silence, and Kai and Elsa didn't mind ignoring them.
One guard spotted the two and did not hesitate to approach them.
"Your grace." The guard said, offering her his help.
Elsa waved him off. "I am fine." Elsa half lied. "Send word out to the other guards and citizens to go about their daily business. This sky isn't going to get blue anytime soon."
The guard, confused as to what that last sentence meant, bowed and walked away.
Elsa and Kai could spot the top of the castle from where they were on the ground. They were close, and Elsa couldn't wait to just go home and get the rest she desperately needed and craved.
"What did you mean when you said Deren drinks damnation?" Elsa asked Kai. He had been rather silent about Deren their entire walk. Elsa didn't want to pry a lot, but she reckoned now was as good as a time as any.
"He's dead." Kai bluntly answered.
"How?" Elsa inquired, having a bad feeling that she already knew.
"Two stab wounds." Kai answered although he really didn't say what Elsa wanted to hear.
"I'm guessing he didn't stab himself." Elsa said, not looking at Kai's face. She knew exactly what Kai had done. Still, she wasn't sure whether or not that affected anything.
The two walked in silence for a few more seconds until Kai finally decided that it was best that he spoke up.
"I did what I had to." Kai said. "He wanted it. I said I didn't, but deep down, I knew that I had to be the one. He threatened to kill you if I didn't do it."
"You still murdered a man." Elsa said. "That's always wrong in someone's eyes."
"Was it murder?" Kai asked, somewhat angry. "He murdered my mother. He murdered his father. He murdered everyone who lived in our old town. He murdered countless others on his pursuit to get to me. Now tell me, is it murder to avenge the deaths of everyone he had wronged?"
"Then what would you call it?" Elsa asked, staring down at Kai.
"Mercy." Kai answered, ignoring her cold stare. "He wouldn't have to live out the rest of his life with grief over what he did... I did it as a friend. An old friend."
"Well," Elsa started, "let's hope you won't have to live with grief over what you did."
"I don't have any grief." Kai coldly said.
When they walked next to a guard who was on a patrol of the city, Elsa gave him orders,
"Go ahead to the castle." Elsa told him. "Tell them to open the gates and get Princess Anna and her husband to wait in the courtyard."
"Right away, your grace." The guard said. He then ran off towards the castle.
Elsa and Kai limped over to the castle in silence, not wanting to recover their conversation after talking about Deren. They soon found themselves walking through the castle gates to find Anna pacing back and forth in the courtyard, Kristoff sitting on the fountain side, and Rhys with his back towards them, restringing his bow. Bloom was flying around with Olaf chasing her.
Anna's worry drained when she saw Elsa walk against Kai into the courtyard. Elsa broke away from Kai's arms and held her arms out for Anna.
"Elsa!" Anna exclaimed as she ran towards her sister. Elsa embraced herself for a big hug, but it wasn't enough. Anna squeezed her so hard it hurt her body bruises. Yet, she didn't show her pain.
"See." Elsa said. "I told you I'd be back."
"I'm sorry I doubted." Anna joked, smiling. "Are you okay?"
"I will be." Elsa admitted. "I got hit harder than I thought, but, I'll live."
Anna then realized that Kai was standing right next to Elsa, but he stood about two feet away. Anna broke away from her sister's arms and stood back, looking at Kai. She could see that his eyes were their natural color.
The first thing that came into Kai's mind was when he grabbed Anna by the throat and choked her against the wall.
"Anna," Kai said, starting to apologize, "I'm-"
Anna lunged at Kai and hugged him tight. Surprised by the loving embrace, he patted her back as she hugged him.
"You're back." Anna stated.
"As if that wasn't obvious..." Kai joked. "I got my memories back and expelled the darkness. But, by then, it was too late."
"I'm sure you did what you could." Anna said.
Kristoff then walked up next to Anna, facing Kai and Elsa. A slight smile broke across his face.
He turned to Elsa. "About time." He joked.
"I'm sorry." Elsa apologized. "You get preoccupied when someone is trying to kill you."
He then turned to Kai and inspected him from head to toe. Kristoff held his hand out at Kai who shook it like an old friend.
"Take a shower, Kai." Kristoff jokes. "You look and smell like crap."
"I feel like crap." Kai admitted.
"Oh yeah," Anna remembered, "there's someone here we want you to meet." She then turned around looking at Rhys who was having trouble stringing his bow. "Rhys, come and meet Kai!"
Kai. Rhys thought. He had seen Kai earlier, but he was sure that wasn't the Kai he was thinking about. But, perhaps there was a change. There had to be a change for him to be sure.
Rhys gently put his bow to the ground and walked over to Kristoff, Anna, Elsa, and Kai. Anna and Kristoff got out of the way to make room for Rhys.
"Kai," Elsa said, "this is Rhys. Rhys, this is Kai."
Kai held out his hand for a shake, but he noticed that Rhys' eyes were widened. Was there something in Kai's face.
Rhys recognized the eyes. The orangish, red eyes. It was the Kai he knew all those years ago after all.
Instead of taking his hand, Rhys lunged and hugged Kai, holding him tight. Kai realized that he wasn't the only one who was thoroughly surprised. Anna, Kristoff, and Elsa all looked at each other with confusion as well.
"It is you." Rhys said. "After all of these years, I never thought I would see you again." He then broke away from Kai and smirked.
"Uh," Kai said, confused. "Am I supposed to know you?"
Rhys' smile broke.
"No." Rhys answered. "I was only a child when I last saw you, and you yourself was only a baby. But, I remembered those eyes. No one else on the planet has the name Kai and possesses eyes like yours. There is no mistaking it. I'm certain you are him."
"Who are you?" Kai asked, done with riddles.
"The question is," Rhys started, "who are you? I know who you are. You are the last of my kin. Our kin. You are the blood of my blood. Our blood. You are my younger brother."
To be continued in the next chapter
Author's Note: Hope you guys liked the chapter. As always, please comment/review to let me know what you think.
Oh, that M. Night Shaymalan level plot twist. Rhys and Kai are actually brothers? Find out in the next chapter whether or not that's the truth. And yes, Deren is dead. You won't be hearing from him alive ever again. Also, lots of Assassin's Creed quotes in this chapter.
So, the prequel story is a go. The prequel is a go for launch. I'm definately doing it when this story is over. For the next story, I'm waiting for the Game of Thrones Telltale episodes to all be released so I can have a sense of where I want this other story to go.
Ciao.